Page 37 - The success Principles

4 J ac k C an f i eld

There is a wonderful story told about a man who is out walking
one night and comes upon another man down on his knees looking for
something under a street lamp. The passerby inquires as to what the
other man is looking for. He answers that he is looking for his lost key.
The passerby offers to help and gets down on his knees and helps him
search for the key. After an hour of fruitless searching, he says, “We’ve
looked everywhere for it and we haven’t found it. Are you sure that you
lost it here?”
The other man replies, “No, I lost it in my house, but there is more
light out here under the street lamp.”
It is time to stop looking outside yourself for the answers to why you
haven’t created the life and results you want, for it is you who creates the
quality of the life you lead and the results you produce.
You—no one else!
To achieve major success in life—to achieve those things that are most
important to you—you must assume 100% responsibility for your life.
Nothing less will do.

100% RESPONSIBILITY FOR EVERYTHING

As I mentioned in the Introduction, when I was only one year out of gradu-
ate school, I had the good fortune to work for W. Clement Stone. He was a
self-made multimillionaire worth $600 million at the time. Stone was also
America’s premier success guru. He was the publisher of Success Magazine,
author of The Success System That Never Fails, and coauthor with Napoleon
Hill of Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude.
When I was completing my first week’s orientation, Mr. Stone asked
me if I took 100% responsibility for my life.
“I think so,” I responded.
“This is a yes or no question, young man. You either do or you don’t.”
“Well, I guess I’m not sure.”
“Have you ever blamed anyone for any circumstance in your life? Have
you ever complained about anything?”
“Uh . . . yeah . . . I guess I have.”
“Don’t guess. Think.”
“Yes, I have.”
“Okay, then. That means you don’t take one hundred percent respon-
sibility for your life. Taking 100% responsibility means you acknowledge
that you create everything that happens to you. It means you understand
that you are the cause of all of your experiences. If you want to be really

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